BENGALURU: Large-sized onions are bringing tears to Benglureans, as cost per kg has reached an all-time high of Rs 170. Onion traders, residents and hoteliers claim that retailers are taking advantage of the festive season and are hoarding onions, as the wholesale rate as of December 24 is only Rs 100.
According to data released by the Yeshwantpur Market, onion prices range between Rs 8,500 and Rs 9,000 per 100 kg for large onions, which are of good quality, making it Rs 85 to Rs 90 per kg. However, the same onions cost Rs 150-Rs 170 per kg in the city.
“It’s really sad that onion rates are not coming down despite wholesale rates being low. Residents have to cough up so much money for onions just before festivals. The quality of smaller, affordable onions is poor,” said Pallavi Narahari, a resident of Indiranagar.
According to Uday Kumar, an onion trader from Yeshwantpur, the retail rates are kept high as people do not know what the wholesale rate is. He says that people should question retailers regarding this, as it is not in favour of traders or farmers. “People are not aware of the wholesale prices. Brokers take a commissioner of 5 per cent, and there are transportation and labour charges too. Waste needs to be accounted for too. Even after all this, the maximum a retailer can sell onions for is Rs 120 per kg, but this margin of almost Rs 70 is very unfortunate,” he said.
Interestingly, traders also claim that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests, which have erupted all across the country, especially in Maharashtra and some cities in North Karnataka from where the major of stock arrives, have taken a toll on transportation of the larger onions.
However, though onions have been imported from Egypt and Turkey, the demand for the same is low, despite them looking more appealing and being sold at high rates like the larger native onions, say traders. “We hoped the price would come down this week after the government imported onions from Egypt and Turkey, but that has not been the case,” a trader told TNIE.
An official from Yeshwantpur Market said that onion prices are unlikely to come down in the next week too, as the demand right now is high, and the vegetable is used heavily in festive dishes. “If supply does not improve, the price of onions is likely to shoot up further,” he said.
Local farmers wary as onions come from Turkey
Bagalkot: With the local Agriculture Produce Market Committee receiving onions from Turkey, the farmers’ community is furious, as the price of onions fell drastically by 20 to 35 per cent per quintal in Vijayapura. In less than a week, the price of onions shot up at least eight times in local markets, owing to the drastic fall in its yield. The onion produce was badly affected due to the recent devastating floods in the border areas of Karnataka-Maharashtra. Onion prices went as high as Rs 12,000 to Rs 14,000 per quintal for top quality onions and poor quality onions were sold at a minimum price of Rs 5,000 per quintal. In Vijayapura, farmers have been standing in queues to sell their onions to traders at APMC, however with onions arriving from Turkey, it has worried the community.